WSMV's Dan Miller dies of heart attack

[firepoint525]

WSMV-TV here in Nashville is reporting that their longtime news anchor Dan Miller has died of an apparent heart attack.
http://boards.radio-info.com/smf/index.php/topic,124340.0.html
Those of you in the rest of the country may remember him for being Pat Sajak's sidekick during Sajak's short-lived talk show back in the late '80s. I believe Miller was also occasionally seen on the old Nashville Network (TNN) as well.

 

[Mike Stroud]

Man, what a sting. Dan Miller, the voice I remember from watching Nashville TV on the Decatur, Ala. cable system as a little kid, to my teenaged years living with my grandmother in middle Tennessee, dead all of a sudden. And while enjoying himself at the most famous event in his hometown!

Miller in recent years was the primary remnant of WSM/WSMV's glory days as a news operation (and station overall) during the 1970s and 1980s. Except for a few years out in L.A. trying his hand at the CBS O&O and later helping out former colleague Pat Sajak on his late-night shipwreck (both ill-advised moves), he has been a Nashville fixture, the only one rivaling him being the recently-retired 40-plus-year anchor on CBS affil WTVF, Chris Clark.

When WSM/WSMV had "hands-off" owners like National Life & Accident Insurance, George Gillett, and the Alaska-based Cook Inlet, the news department was second to none in the South and frequently placed among the top in the country. The station won Peabody Awards, something that probably isn't given to TV stations anymore (because of their universally gutter-quality news broadcasts), of all things, for its hard-hitting coverage and investigative reporting. One must remember that Nashville, despite its national reputation as a country-music center and thus, a "redneck" place, actually has a large population of well-educated, white-collar residents who demanded that TV news be a cut above the likes of, say, Memphis, Lexington, Ky., or Birmingham. Those people formed the core that Miller and his colleagues served for so many years, with sober, non-sensationalistic presentation, vigorous follow-up on pressing political and economic stories (as opposed to being mainly a crime blotter), and RESPECT for the viewers.

Unfortunately, when the behemoth Meredith got its hands on the station in 1995, the station began going to pot in a hurry, and pretty soon, the awards stopped coming, as the company saw no purpose in spending money on a high-quality news operation when they thought a mediocre one would suit people just fine. Although I moved out of the Nashville TV market about that time and only watched WSMV sporadically since then, I got the impression that Miller, co-anchor Demetria Kalodimos (who had been with him 25 years, one of the country's longest-running anchor duos), now-retired weatherman Bill Hall, and sportscaster Rudy Kalis were straining to retain their dignity and composure under the constraints of sound-bite-driven reports, less-than-serious story choices, and the highly-polished technological glitz that has become de rigeur on stations today.

Really, one should be shocked that Meredith didn't run him off years ago. The only reason they didn't is because middle Tennesseans, whether city or country, native or newcomer, have shown a singular preference for viewing long-established talent. For proof, witness that Chris Clark stayed for 40 years on WTVF, and that Anne Holt (1976) and Bob Mueller (1980) remain on third-place WKRN, the ABC affil--elsewhere in the country, they would gotten their pink slips ages ago; nobody joining a TV news department will ever hope to stay in one place for even a fraction of that length these days. Nashville is, in many respects, an anachronism; Miller's passing might be the watershed for radical changes, none of them for the good IMO, in that market.

But back to Miller himself; he was versatile, handling the announcer's booth for station IDs and at sign-off time in the 1970s. He also did V/O for WSM radio when it was still co-owned with the TV station. He did interview shows with local and national figures, including loads of country music stars (he even did it for the now-defunct Nashville Network in the early 1990s). All in all, they don't make newsmen (or newswomen) like him anymore. Even if you didn't grow up in the Nashville market, reading his bio on the WSMV site or watching clips of his old newscasts on YouTube should bring to mind somebody like him in the market you grew up in. Miller was exceptional in the fact that he died while he still had his boots on; most everybody else retired or got shoved out by hot-shot managers and consultants earlier in this decade.

Kind thoughts and prayers are in order not only for Miller's family, but also Demetria Kalodimos and Rudy Kalis, since it is not entirely out of the question that Meredith may well use this as an excuse to get rid of them. My hope is that won't happen, but with Meredith's rep as a ruthless, lean and mean company, I am fearing the worst for WSMV.

 

[Corky Marlowe]

I believe Miller was also occasionally seen on the old Nashville Network (TNN) as well.

He used to anchor their rodeo telecasts. I'm probably like anyone else outside of Nashville who never got to see him truly in his element. Did he and Sajak work at the same station when Sajak did weather in Nashville?

 

[bpatrick]

They did work together, and Oprah Winfrey was
on WTVF at about the same time.

I've often heard that you can't get a really bad
newscast in Nashville on Chs. 2, 4, or 5, and for
that matter, the Lexington newscasts are better
than average for a market that size, so I'm told.
The two market leaders in Music City, 4 and 5,
take different approaches to their news: 4 is a
little more folksy, with its audience primarily in
small towns and rural areas well out from Nashville,
while 5 tends to be more businesslike,
with its audience primarily in the city and suburbs.

Does Meredith have a decent newscast anywhere?
Their Atlanta station, WGCL, certainly doesn't qualify.

 

[Mike Stroud]

I believe Miller was also occasionally seen on the old Nashville Network (TNN) as well.

He used to anchor their rodeo telecasts. I'm probably like anyone else outside of Nashville who never got to see him truly in his element. Did he and Sajak work at the same station when Sajak did weather in Nashville?

They sure did, during the mid-1970s, when Sajak was a weekend/substitute weatherman. His main job at WSM at the time, however, was that of a mid-afternoon disc jockey on the AM, back when that station still played adult contemporary/pop during the daytime. On TV, Miller and he would engage in humorous banter before and after his weather segments on the newscasts (Sajak was more of a jokester then than today), long before that became the norm. Some clips of those are available on YouTube; check them out.

 

[Mike Stroud]

They did work together, and Oprah Winfrey was
on WTVF at about the same time.

I've often heard that you can't get a really bad
newscast in Nashville on Chs. 2, 4, or 5, and for
that matter, the Lexington newscasts are better
than average for a market that size, so I'm told.
The two market leaders in Music City, 4 and 5,
take different approaches to their news: 4 is a
little more folksy, with its audience primarily in
small towns and rural areas well out from Nashville,
while 5 tends to be more businesslike,
with its audience primarily in the city and suburbs.

Does Meredith have a decent newscast anywhere?
Their Atlanta station, WGCL, certainly doesn't qualify.

Let me set the record straight: I didn't mean to demean Lexington as a place where news was certainly of poor quality; in fact, I have no knowledge of that market and now regret using it as an example. I was using it as an example of a typical Southern market whose viewers mostly care about crime, sob stories and college sports on their newscasts (I could have used my home market, Huntsville-Decatur-Florence, to better effect). I just don't see where a Dan Miller could have fit in, in places like that. Like I said, Nashville's situation is very unique and was once a model for the region. Now, the nature of the TV business has leveled every station down to lowest-common-denominator; my standards are so high thanks to my growing up with WSMV (as you may tell, I am an embittered ex-journalism major). With Miller and most of his contemporaries gone, I may as well just forget TV news--I already have for years anyway.

 

[jwgreek8606]

I believe Miller was also occasionally seen on the old Nashville Network (TNN) as well.

He used to anchor their rodeo telecasts. I'm probably like anyone else outside of Nashville who never got to see him truly in his element. Did he and Sajak work at the same station when Sajak did weather in Nashville?

I think that's a different Dan Miller you're referring to. That Dan Miller also hosted the TNN game shows Top Card and 10 seconds.

 

[firepoint525]

Re: WSMV's Bill Hall dies

Since my old thread was pulled up again, thought I'd update it to add that WSMV's longtime weatherman (don't think he was a meteorologist) Bill Hall has also died. He died sometime yesterday or last night, I believe. He was 65 years old, and had retired from WSMV in 2005, although he occasionally appeared in commercials for H.G. Hill's, even in retirement.

Channel 4 showed some old footage of Hall last night, most of which showed him interacting with Miller.

 

[Mike Stroud]

Thanks for the sad, but important, news. Hall was the first truly prominent African-American on a Nashville newscast, having started his career at WSM in 1974 as a weekend weathercaster. (One source has him doing DJ work at then-rock station WKDF for a couple of years before then) He also did co-anchoring for a brief spell circa 1975 before he got his big break in '77 when Pat Sajak, who had been doing the weeknight weather, got the call to KNBC in Los Angeles. He, Dan Miller, and a succession of female co-anchors and sportscasters, formed the solid core that would take that station to prominence in Nashville ratings for years.

Hall was known for his down-home, calm demeanor and for his warm tributes via his daily "Sunshine Awards," presented to relatives of selected viewers. As a sideshow of sorts, he hosted a hunting and fishing show on late Sunday nights during the 1980s and 1990s, reflecting a long-standing interest of his (he hailed from rural Spring Hill, Tennessee, south of Nashville).

That leaves only two from WSMV's glory days as a news operation: Rudy Kalis and Demertria Kalodimos. In the meantime, RIP.

 

[Bob1370]

"Does Meredith have a decent newscast anywhere?"

Can't speak for today. Back in the 70s they had a high quality market-leader in Syracuse on the old WHEN-TV, and their Kansas City outlet KCMO-TV had a similarly strong reputation. A new generation of the Meredith family has taken over the company from Ted Meredith and I can't comment on how their operation runs today--further, the Syracuse station was sold to Granite Broadcasting, which has ruined it completely.

 

[Mike Stroud]

Thanks for the sad, but important, news. Hall was the first truly prominent African-American on a Nashville newscast, having started his career at WSM in 1974 as a weekend weathercaster. (One source has him doing DJ work at then-rock station WKDF for a couple of years before then) He also did co-anchoring for a brief spell circa 1975 before he got his big break in '77 when Pat Sajak, who had been doing the weeknight weather, got the call to KNBC in Los Angeles. He, Dan Miller, and a succession of female co-anchors and sportscasters, formed the solid core that would take that station to prominence in Nashville ratings for years.

Hall was known for his down-home, calm demeanor and for his warm tributes via his daily "Sunshine Awards," presented to relatives of selected viewers. As a sideshow of sorts, he hosted a hunting and fishing show on late Sunday nights during the 1980s and 1990s, reflecting a long-standing interest of his (he hailed from rural Spring Hill, Tennessee, south of Nashville).

That leaves only two from WSMV's glory days as a news operation: Rudy Kalis and Demertria Kalodimos. In the meantime, RIP.

I must correct myself on one point: according to a tribute on the WSMV site by former WKDF-FM morning host Carl P. Mayfield (who worked on the station both during its rock and country days), Hall was actually a newscaster, not a DJ. The article: http://www.wsmv.com/story/16388130/what-theyre-saying-about-bill-hall.

Also, here's a splendid example of his work on WSMV, back in the 1980s: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7tTGhy7Q8g.

 

[searadiofreak]

Fine, but this post is about Dan Miller. My memory of him only comes from the Sajak show, where he seemed to a be middle-aged, healthy, sidekick. A shocker, but also a reminder of how age can catch up with you, especially if you don't take care of yourself. (Not saying this is the case with Miller, but when you hear of someone who looked good in '89, you do have questions. I don't know his age, but can't believe he was past his 60's.) If I missed his age at passing, forgive me.

 

[searadiofreak]

OK, after some quick research, Miller died two years ago.

This thread lacks clarity, however. Who is it really about?

 

[searadiofreak]

This is a clear example of when a new thread is indicated.

 

[firepoint525]

To be clear, I changed the subject line in my most recent posting in this thread to update it to say that Bill Hall of channel 4 died (last week). I did not pull up this old thread because it had run its course. Unfortunately, the subject line got changed back. Miller was 68 when he died in 2009; Hall was 65 when he died last week. I hope that clears it up. Since I moved to Nashville in '92, I had only previously known of Miller as Sajak's sidekick.

 

[Mike Stroud]

This is a clear example of when a new thread is indicated.

Oh, come on. Threads get off the main subject all the time. Don't be so picky about it. Oftentimes, by technically getting away from the main subject, light may often be shed on it that wouldn't occur otherwise. I know that doesn't always happen, of course, but sometimes it does.

 

[searadiofreak]

This is a clear example of when a new thread is indicated.

Oh, come on. Threads get off the main subject all the time. Don't be so picky about it. Oftentimes, by technically getting away from the main subject, light may often be shed on it that wouldn't occur otherwise. I know that doesn't always happen, of course, but sometimes it does.

Mike, thanks for your input. Let me offer that most in this country, outside of Nashville, don't recall Miller's death two years later. I spent a good half hour thinking Miller had died just recently due to this post. (of course, I didn't look carefully at the date, so I am somewhat to blame). All I am asking is for those who choose to post here atleast offer some basic background, then they can get off the main subject. Don't have a problem with getting off subject, do have a problem with no background.